In many hospitals and doctor's offices, medical personnel wear respirator masks for safety reasons. The respirator mask covers the nose and mouth of a doctor or nurse, protecting them from airborne infections and diseases. Furthermore, patients and their family and friends visiting in the hospital commonly wear respirator masks to protect themselves from contracting or spreading an infection. Respirator masks serve an important purpose in preventing the spread of infectious diseases around a hospital and into the general public. In alternative settings, respirator masks are adapted to protect the user from harmful particles in the air related to the setting. For example, respirator masks are used commonly in the painting industry as well as by international travelers.
Returning to the hospital setting, patients and visitors sometimes resist the use of these respirator masks for a number of reasons. The respirator masks are certainly not very fashionable. Furthermore, a room full of visitors wearing respirator masks can be intimidating or even scary for younger patients. A patient who wears a respirator mask all the time may feel insecure about their appearance. All of these reasons could lead a person to not wear the respirator mask, which may have dire consequences if the infection spreads to the patient or general public as a result. Thus, it would be desirable to improve the appearance of a respirator mask.